Improvement in seeding-machines



' UNITED' STATESv PATENT. OFFICE- y B.` F. FIELD, OF SHEBOYGAN FALLS,WISCONSIN.

IMPROVEMENT IN SE'EDINCl-IVIAVCH INES.

, Specification forming part et Letters Patent No. 35,438, dated June 3,1862.

To all lwhom it may concern: A Be it known that I, B. F. FIELD, ofSheboygan Falls, in the county of Sheboygan an'd State of Wisconsin,have invented a llew andV usefullmprovementin Seeding-Machines and I dohereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact descriptionthereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, making apartof this specification, in which- Figure 1 is a plan lof my improvedmachine. Fig.l 2 is a vertical longitudinal section taken at the line a;so.` Fig. 3 is an end view of the seed-hopper.

y Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in theseveral figures.A v

It consists, first, in the means employed for regulating the size of theseed-openings to adapt the machine to `sow any given quantity of seed tothe acre.

, It consists, sec'ondly, ill a combination of parts hereinafter to bedescribed.' Y

It consists, thirdly, in the peculiar 'construction and arrangement ofagitator hereinafterV to be described.

'ro enable those skilled in the art te fully ,understand alld constructmy invention, I will proceed to describe it.

A .represents a hopper ot usual construction formed withdownwardly-convergiug,sides and to the frame B catches when the machineis in' condition to secure the hopper ill its proper position. Thehopper is provided with a true and false bottom located olle above theother and both a little above its lower edge and supported withinterposed seed-slides in rabbets extending on eachside the entirelength of the hopper. The hopper onthe inside is divided by a partition,ol, which extends the entire length thereof and about two-thirds of theheiglltof the same from the bottom upward, formingtwo compartments, E F,ot' unequal capacity. The one in front and smallest, E, being forgrass-seed,` and the other, F, for grain. The grass seed compartment Eis closed by an inclined cover, e, attached by hinges to the top edge ofthe partition d, and

`resting at its opposite edge against the inner Vfront side ot thehopper. The false bottom a in each ofthe compartments bf the hopper isfurnished with openings to allow the grain ,and grass-seed to passthrough them.

The slide Gr 'under the grain-seed compart- -ment is made somewhatshorter than the hopper, and is furnished with openingsI correspond-Iing in size with those in the bottom ot the com partment F, and isattached at one end to a screw, f, which is fitted to work through anut, g, fitted in` one end ofthe seed-hopper, said nut being furnishedon its periphery with cog-teeth, and on its outer end with thumbpieces,whereby it is rotated, and the seedmeasuring slide Gr` moved in adirection to `cover more or lesstas may be desired) of the seed-openings in the false bottoma ofthe graincompartment F to adapt the machine tosow any given quantity of grain to the acre. The

cogs on the periphery of the thumb-nut g mesh into similar cogs of thewheel h (shown in dotted lines ill Figs. 1 and 3) on the outer end ofwhose axis an index, t', is xed, which, pointillg to the iigures on thediaLindicates the number offbushels per acre the machine is setv to sow.

The measuring-slide H underthe grain-seed compartment E is perforated tocorrespond with the openings in its false bottom, alld is attached to ascrew and operated by a thumbnut, j, in precisely the same manner as theone `before mentioned, with the exception that it has no connection withan index.

ACovering the under side of the grain and grass-seed measuring slides isa shutoff slide, I, which is supported by cross-pieces K, attached attheir opposite ends to the rabbets by screws; or they may be attached inany other suitable manner. The shut-oft' slide, in a central lineimmediately under the seed-grain openings, is furnished with openings ofcorresponding size, and under the grass-seed openings it is notched, sothat whenV moved in one direction by means of the rod s the openings aremade to correspond with those in both compartments E F ofthe hopper, andwhen moved in the opposite direction the ilnperforate portion of theslide is brought under the seed-openings in the false bottom, and theythereby closed. Theobject of this latter slide I is to enable theoperator to stop the llow of seed from the compartments .E F while themachine is being transported to or from the iield Without having tochange or move the measuring-slides and thus having to adjust the sameevery time the machine is used.

To enable the farmer to shut oft' the flow ot' the seed through any oneor more of the seedopenings without effecting the other, short slideslare fitted transversely of the hopper in rabbets formed in the innersides of the cross-pieces k. These slides have each an opening in themof the same size as the openings in the measuring-slide G, and are movedto one side or the other to cover or uncover the openings in themeasuring-slide, as may be desired, by a rod, m, attached to one end andprotruding through the back side of the hopper.

The true bottom n of the hopper at its front edge forms a chute, o, togive a forward direction to the grass-seed as it issues from the hopper,and thus prevent it from getting mixed with the grain.

J J are seed-tubes, located immediately under the openings in the falsebottom a and depending` from the bottom n, for the purpose of conductingthe grain into the drills, which may be formed in any of the usual Ways.

Each of the compartments E F is furnished with a stirrer, which iscomposed of a disk of metal,p,in elliptical form,secured in an obliqueposition in a shaft, q, supported at its end respectively in the endsot' the hopper.

The shaft onwhich the disks are placed are arranged so as to revolve inclose proximity to the false bottom a ot' the hopper, and by itsrotation to move the grain in the direction of the length ot the hopperover the openings therein.

The stirrers are revolved by means ot` bands passing over the hub ot'the driving-wheels and pulleys on the ends of the shafts, or they may bedriven by means of cog-gearing it pre- 'erred.

The grain and grass-seed, being placed in their respective ,compartmentsin the hopper, are prevented from passingI through the seedopcningswhile the machine is being transported to or from the field by theshut-ofi' slide I being moved so as. to cover the openings in themeasuring-slide.

By turning the thumb-screw nut g the grainmeasuring slide G may beadjusted so as to adapt the machine to sow any given quantity ot' seedto the acre, the index pointing out the amount on the dial N. Whenproperly adjusted the shut-off slide I is removedto the opposite end ot'the hopper, and the machine is then ready for use.

When it is desired to clean the compartments in the hopper of seed afterthe machine has been used it is effected by simply uni'astening thehopper at the front side and turning it over, as shown in red lines inFig. 2, allowing the grain to run out first before the unfastening thecover of the grass-seed compartment.

I am aware that a measuring-slide in the hopper of a secdingmachine hasbeen arranged so as to be moved by a screw at one end of the hopper andthe said movement of the slide made to operate an index pivoted on theside of the hopper, as in the rejected application ot' Kuhn da Haines,January 13, 1855, and others. I therefore make no claim to such.

I am also aware that agitators have been made consisting of a series ot'spiral flanges arranged on the periphery of a drum; also of one or moreserpentine iianges on a drum, and therefore make no claim to suchdevices; but,

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire t0secure by Letters Patent, is-

l. The combination of the grain-measuring slide G, screw j',tl1umb-nutg,index'i,and dial N withthe bottom a and shut-ott' slide I,when arranged in the manner and for the purpose set forth.

2. The combination ot the compartments E F, false bottom a, slides GA I,tubes J J, and chute o, when arranged as described.

3. The agitators consisting ot' ellipticallyformed disks ot' metal p,secured in an oblique position on a horizontal shaft, q, arranged tooperate in the manner and for the purpose set forth.

B. F. FIELD.

Witnesses:

J AMES U. GRIDLEY, EDM. F. BRoWN.

